Using the latest version of T-Rex, prisms and hexahedral elements can coexist in the same grid. Note the near-field hybrid block matches point-for-point the outer structured block. The inset image displays the pressure contours on the surface of the vehicle as it operates at transonic speeds.

In 1963, Craig Breedlove set the world land-speed record in the Spirit of America, a record that he would later reclaim several more times in the next two years. Fifty years later, Breedlove has decided that it is time to bring the title back to America. In a new team led by Breedlove, the Spirit of America is being revived with the goal of once again claiming a new world record for land-speed vehicles.

Historically, land-speed vehicles were shaped by rule of thumb aerodynamics. However in the 50 years since the first turbojet vehicle officially set a land-speed record, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has matured to a point where it can be inexpensively used to help simulate performance characteristics on such vehicles. One of the largest initial hurdles for Breedlove and his team has been quickly analyzing new designs with limited resources. To that end, TotalSim agreed to help with the preliminary CFD analysis given a restricted budget. The key to success for both parties was generating inexpensive accurate results.

Leveraging Pointwise, TotalSim generated a hybrid grid, balancing mesh generation time and solution accuracy. Pointwise's structured and unstructured meshing techniques coupled with T-Rex (anisotropic tetrahedral extrusion) were used to generate layers of unstructured hexahedra and prisms, helping to reduce the overall cell count and improve grid quality. Additionally, TotalSim was able to exploit the flexibility of Pointwise and manually adapt the grid to help resolve shock structures and more accurately predict vehicle performance.

Andy Luo is a graduate of the University of Southern California where he received a BS in Aerospace Engineering and an MS in Aerospace Design. Andy spent 6 years with Swift Engineering where he spearheaded their CFD capabilities in both automotive and aerospace design. During that time he achieved many aggressive milestones such as aiding the design of an aircraft from paper to first flight in 200 days, generating a one billion cell unstructured unified mesh on a vehicle, and executing a dynamic vehicle passing maneuver. In 2012 Andy began working with TotalSim to further their aerospace capabilities. He is currently working on many exciting developments using OpenFOAM® and Pointwise.

Pointwise, Inc. is solving the top problem facing CFD today - reliably generating high-fidelity meshes. The company's Pointwise software generates structured, unstructured and hybrid meshes; interfaces with CFD solvers, such as ANSYS FLUENT, STAR-CCM+, ANSYS CFX, OpenFOAM, and SU2 as well as many neutral formats, such as CGNS; runs on Windows (Intel and AMD), Linux (Intel and AMD), and Mac, and has a scripting language, Glyph, that can automate CFD meshing. Large manufacturing firms and research organizations worldwide rely on Pointwise as their complete CFD preprocessing solution.

TotalSim, a CFD design team, takes innovative design ideas from initial concept to high-performance reality. They stand for innovation with more than 100 years of combined design experience. They are industry-impacting with design teams in Dublin, Ohio, and Brackley, England who serve organizations of all sizes, budgets, and timetables. TotalSim delivers innovative consulting, development, training, installation and support using leading-edge OPEN and commercial tools.